A New Beginning
by kaida-amarante
Summary: World War III was started by Germany to restore the Kingdom of Prussia. Years after the death of Gilbert Beilschmidt, his friend Antonio finally visits his grave in what used to be Prussia. SpainxPrussia. Some characters are OOC. Now completed!
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Random fic I wrote in like…an hour or two. Idea randomly popped into my head. Actually, it's based off of a multi-chapter USUK fic I wrote during World War III. Anyway, I don't own the characters…and enjoy! Please review!**

"Hey there, Gilbo! It's me! Well, um…Francis was supposed to come with me to see you but he called this morning and said that something came up and he wouldn't be able to make it, so it's just me. Sorry it's been so long since we talked last…in fact, I haven't visited since…" Antonio trailed off, his gaze falling over the green hills around him. "Well, since Prussia as a country was dissolved. Well, I mean, we couldn't really visit you when you were at Ivan's place. I wonder, Gilbo, what on earth did he do to make you like this? You haven't said a word yet."

Once again the Spaniard trailed off, his green eyes filling with tears. "What should I do, Gilbo? Go after him for you since you can't do it yourself?" The tears fell like rivers down his tan cheeks at this point. "No, you'd feel weak if I did that for you." Antonio pulled his knees up to his chest and rested his head on them, wrapping his arms around his legs, making himself as small as possible.

"It's…strange, Gilbo. Barhopping and picking up chicks without you just isn't the same." Antonio smiled sadly at the bright sunlight. "You know, World War Three just ended…did you know your little brother started it because of you? Because the Allies dissolved you as a country, he started a war to get you that status back."

"I know, you're probably mad because I haven't come to visit after…how many years is it now? I've lost track…but is that why you aren't talking to me?" Antonio sighed and let his smile fall, staring out into the distance, afraid to look over to where Gilbert was, afraid to face the Prussian. "Eliza's been crying a lot since you were dissolved. And Roderich and Ludwig have changed a lot. Everyone keeps telling me that I'm delusional to think that you're still here and that you died a long time ago, but I know better. You wouldn't die that easily, would you? You're safe somewhere, I know it, Gilbert. You're not…gone…"

Antonio's eyes widened as he turned and stared at the makeshift grave marker with a necklace hanging from it. He took the necklace in his hand and stared down at the Knights of the Iron Cross symbol hanging from it, closing his eyes and sobbing. "You're not! You can't be gone, Gilbert! You can't be! I never even told you that I love you, Gilbert!"

"Hey, you! Who are you and what are you doing here?" Antonio jumped at the slightly familiar voice and the feeling of metal against his neck. "Don't you know that nobody is supposed to cry when they're in the most awesome country of the world?"

The Spaniard turned and stared at the figure behind him. He was just a kid, wearing full white and holding the sword that was pressed against Antonio's neck. The kid's hair was shaggy and an off-white much like that of his clothing, contrasted by his blood red eyes. "Y-you're…"

"Königreich Preußen! The Kingdom of Prussia! Also known as the amazingly awesome Gilbert Beilshmidt!"

Antonio's face broke into a sunny smile. „Nice to meet you, your awesomness! My name is Antonio and it's wonderful to meet you!"

It was time for a new begninning.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Wow…actually, this version of the story was supposed to be an oneshot, but the reviews asked for more so here ya go! Had to really wrack my brain for what to do here…so it's probably not that good but anyway, please review and I hope you enjoy!**

**Be warned: extreme Gilbert cuteness ahead!**

"Let me down, you idiot!" Antonio laughed brightly at the child's protest and kicks as the Spaniard slung the Prussian over his shoulder and carried the boy to the UN meeting that day. "Where on Earth do you think you're taking me?"

"To meet all the other nations." Antonio smiled as he stated his answer like it was the most obvious thing ever. "You need to meet them, Your Awesomeness. Especially Ludwig. He's your hermano you know."

Gilbert stilled. "What does that word mean?"

"It's…as you would say, Bruder, correct?"

"Ah! I've got a Bruder? Is he as awesome as I am? No, wait, what am I saying? No one is as awesome as I am!" Gilbert smirked and stared into the distance. "Hey, Antonio, can I ask you something?"

Antonio laughed. "You just did. But sure, ask away."

"Why are you so nice to me?" Antonio was the one who stilled this time. "You don't know me…it doesn't make sense." The Spaniard dropped Gilbert on his feet on the ground below them and studied the boy. He still looked like a younger Gilbert.

How could he answer this question? 'Because I loved you'? He couldn't say that to a kid! Especially not when he couldn't say it to Gilbert when they were about the same age! "Because you remind me of a friend of mine that I lost a long time ago."

It was hard not to note the confusion and curiosity in the crimson eyes of the child before him as Antonio picked him up again and carried him to the conference room in the building the UN meeting was being held in. They were late, of course, so everyone was already calm and seated when Antonio walked in, carrying Gilbert with him.

Everyone gasped when they saw the silverette, some (like Germany and Hungary) standing and racing over to the boy as Antonio set him down on his feet. Francis stood and made his way over to Antonio, his blue eyes wide with wonder. "Tonio…? What's…?"

"He's really back. Francis! Gilbert is really back!" Antonio's emerald eyes sparkled in happiness as he grabbed at Francis's jacket. "He's back!"

"What's going to happen to him now though?"

"I guess…" Antonio trailed off and smiled softly at Ludwig, who was practically crying. "He's going to go live with Ludwig now. Try to get him back to his old self and-"

The Spaniard growled deeply and took a step towards Gilbert as another man stood with a too innocent smile on his face and walked toward the Prussian. "Well, Prussia, it looks like you are back now, da?" Antonio moved quickly in front of Ludwig, who was now holding Gilbert in his arms as he stood. "But it looks like no one will let me near you, da?"

At this, Elizaveta stood and stepped next to Antonio, pulling out her frying pan as she glared at Ivan. "Of course no one's going to let you near him! He told me what you did to him!" Ludwig stepped backward with Gilbert as he yelled the words at the Russian. Gilbert stared up at his brother with a look on his face that screamed 'what the heck are you talking about?'

Antonio turned slightly so that he could see Ludwig out of the corner of his eye but still had Ivan in his sight as he spoke. "Hey, get him out of here, will you, Ludwig? Take him somewhere safe. Eliza and I will take care of everything here, ¿no?"

Elizaveta nodded and took a fighting stance, holding the frying pan as her weapon as Ludwig ran out with Gilbert in his arms. "Well now, Ivan, Vamos a hacer para que lo que hicieron con él. Y algo más. Usted no va a hacerle daño nunca más."

Ivan's smile became wider as he looked at the two in front of him.

Antonio smiled back, his eyes turning dark.

Gilbert stared up, his red eyes concerned. "Are you…Ludwig? That means you're my Bruder, right?"

Ludwig smiled down, tears falling down his cheeks as he took in the sight of his brother nestled safely in his arms as the German raced away from Ivan. "That is correct, Bruder."

"Then why are you crying? Tears come when you're sad, right? But if you're my Bruder, then you should be happy and not crying!" Gilbert looked away with sad eyes. "You shouldn't be crying…"

A small chuckle escaped Ludwig's throat. How could his older brother end up this cute as a child? It made no sense. "Bruder, people cry when they feel multiple different emotions. Not just sadness. And these, Bruder, are tears of happiness. I'm so happy to have you here with me. Ich liebe dich."

Gilbert looked up slowly almost shyly and smiled a bit before it faltered and he looked away, staring at nothing in particular. "Will…will Antonio be okay? That other guy was scary…"

Ludwig's hands tightened around his brother and his pace slowed to a stop. "Antonio is string. He's going to be just fine."

"And the girl?"

"Elizaveta's strong as well. Maybe even stronger than Antonio." Ludwig smiled again as Gilbert smiled in relief and drifted slowly to sleep. "Schlafen Sie gut, Bruder." As those words left his lips the blonde German carried his brother into the house and laid him down in the now elder boy's bed, covering him up and walking off to grab a beer and some wurst. He had just settled down at the kitchen table to eat when he heard persistent banging on his kitchen door. He groaned as he stood and walked to the door which he swung open to reveal a bloody Antonio. "Wh-what are you…?"

Antonio smiled his usual bright smile, despite the blood running down his face. "Ah, I knew you'd bring him here, Ludwig! Is he okay? He's doing well, yeah? How is he?"

Ludwig couldn't help but smile at the pure concern in Antonio's voice. "He's just fine. He fell asleep on the way up here and is now sleeping in my bed room. Please clean up before you go see him though. I don't want all the blood to traumatize him."

Sunny laughter filled the air as Ludwig walked back into the kitchen, Antonio following and shutting the door behind him. "Ludwig, this is Gilbert we're talking about! Even though he is a kid, I doubt a bit of blood will hurt him in the least bit!"

"Not the blood, but the fact that it's on you." Ludwig turned and faced Antonio, his face completely serious as the Spaniard's filled with shock. "He worried about you all the way here. I don't think him seeing you covered in blood will help at all."

Before Antonio could retort, both men were startled by a small voice. "Antonio…? Why are you…?" The turned towards the staircase that lead upstairs to Ludwig's bedroom, emerald and icy blue eyes widening in shock as they took in the small form of Gilbert standing there, shaking slightly, his crimson eyes wide in shock and worry as he stared at Antonio.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Antonio turns into a fanboy in this one! Finally! Um…anyway…More Gilbert cuteness. You have been warned. Also, sadness warning! Lots of crying in this chapter! I don't own the characters or anything. This is going really well! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, or all of that this story! I appreciate it greatly! And it gives me great ideas!**

Antonio smiled brightly and looked down at Gilbert. "Hey, Kiddo! Did you have a good nap?"

Red eyes narrowed and Gilbert glared up at Antonio. "You're covered in blood! Don't pretend nothing's wrong!" Antonio and Ludwig watched in shock as Gilbert lowered his head until they couldn't see his face any longer. "Don't act like everything's okay if you're hurt!" With those words, the boy's shoulders started shaking and he sobbed quietly, hoping no one would notice even though both men did.

A blush covered Antonio's face as he picked Gilbert up and swung him around, laughing. "Gilbert! You're so cute!" Ignoring the indignant squawks from the child, Antonio pulled him into a tight hug. "I'm fine! Trust me, I've had much worse than this and been fine." The Spaniard smiled brightly at the child in his arms. He frowned when Gilbert started crying harder. "What's wrong?"

"You didn't have to worry me so bad, you idiot!" Ludwig smiled softly and turned to Antonio as Gilbert clung to the Spaniard, his sobs filling the air. Antonio just held the boy to his chest and rocked him as the sobs quieted and finally quit, and until his breathing fell back into a normal rate. "I was really worried…"

"I know, Gilbert. But you don't need to worry any longer. I'm just fine." He felt Gilbert's soft nod and smiled at Ludwig. "Now I think you need some more sleep." Ludwig smiled back at Antonio and led him to the bedroom, where the brunette set Gilbert down on the bed. "Where can a guy get a shower in here?"

Ludwig pulled the cover over Gilbert and smiled down at the boy. "Down the hallway, second door on the left."

Antonio had turned and was walking away when he felt a small hand grab his and hold him back. He turned, shocked and stared down at Gilbert. "You're…gonna leave me?" It took all of Antonio's willpower not to squeal and hug Gilbert, who was looking up at him with all the innocent cuteness of any other child.

"Hey, hey, I'm just going to go wash this blood off and be right back! I promise!" Antonio leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to the Prussian's forehead before giving him a reassuring smile and walking away to the bathroom.

"Gilbert! I came right back like I said I wou-" Antonio stopped and smiled, leaning on the open doorway to Ludwig's bedroom where he could see Ludwig lying in the bed asleep, Gilbert curled up against his side. He slowly closed the door behind him as he left the room.

"Hey, Antonio?" Antonio smiled across the table to where Gilbert was sitting in a chair where his feet didn't even brush the ground, eating food Antonio had made a few minutes earlier. "Can I call you Toni? It's much quicker than trying to call you Antonio all the time."

Antonio laughed and reached across the table to run his hand through the silver hair. "Of course, on one condition. You have to let me call you Gilbo!"

"It's a deal!" Gilbert smiled brightly before hearing a knock on the kitchen door and jumping up to open it. "Feliciano! Kiku! What are you two doing here?"

"Silly, we came to see you ve~!" Gilbert ran back inside followed by Feliciano and Kiku, who greeted Antonio and settled in.

"Lud isn't here right now, but he said he'll be home from work as soon as he can be!" Gilbert hopped onto Feliciano's lap and got comfortable, burying his head in the Italian's shirt and smiling.

Kiku smiled and looked over towards the boy. "Actually, we came to see you, Gil-chan." He then pulled forward the duffle bag he had been carrying with him. "We brought you some gifts. Feliciano-kun made you lots of pasta you can heat up whenever you get hungry, and I brought you new toys from my home."

Gilbert suddenly perked up and he ran to Kiku, who handed him multiple different toys, game systems, and video games before walking over to the fridge and putting multiple bowls of different pastas inside. "Antonio-san, I'm very sorry to intrude on your dinner."

"Eh? It's fine! Gilbo's happy now and that's all that really matters, right?" Antonio smiled and turned to look at Gilbert, who was sitting on the floor with Feliciano, both playing with the toys Kiku had brought along. "I forgot how innocent and cute he was as a kid…"

"Everybody has been doting on him, or they're planning to. He's going to be spoiled when he finally grows up…"

"He'd be spoiled anyway just because of me! Forget everyone else!" Antonio laughed brightly, his voice filling the air like sunshine.

Kiku smiled softly, thoughtfully. "Yes, you would spoil him rotten, wouldn't you?"

Antonio turned to Kiku, still smiling. "Ah? Was that supposed to mean something?"

"Nothing at all. And if I heard right, Elizaveta-chan will be over later. She may bring Roderich-san with her." Kiku smiled and turned to Feliciano. "Now, Feliciano-kun, we should be leaving, hai? Gil-chan, we will come back to visit you soon."

After saying goodbye, Antonio smiled down at Gilbert. "So, you ready to finish eating Boss's awesome food?" After an agreement from the child, Antonio picked him up and set him back in the chair, where he finished eating quickly.

"Hey, Toni?" Antonio smiled across the table where Gilbert was sitting, staring at him intently. "I never really understood this. Lud's my Bruder, right? But you aren't?"

Antonio laughed a bit. "No, I'm not related to you guys at all. Just a family friend."

"Then why are you living here? And you say you're a family friend, but you and Lud don't get along too well…"

"You think really deeply for someone your age. Well, I'm living here right now so I can take care of you. And…well…Ludwig had an older brother before you came along. He was one of my closest friends. So that's how I'm a family friend." Antonio struggled to keep a smile on his face during his explanation and knew what Gilbert was about to ask. "You can't meet him. He…he died a long time ago."

Gilbert watched Antonio's smile falter and his eyes cloud with emotion and memories. "How can you call him a good friend if thinking about him makes you sad?" The boy cocked his head softly to the side, muttering the words as if he were asking himself and trying to see if he could find a reason.

"No, it's not him that makes me sad, Gilbo, it's the fact that he's gone and I'm never going to see him again." The words hit Antonio like a ton of bricks. The kid in front of him looked like Gilbert and acted somewhat like Gilbert, but he would be brought up completely differently in a different world. His personality and relationships would change and, it finally made sense, even when he grew up, this would never be the Gilbert Antonio had fallen in love with. The Spaniard finally broke down and cried.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Is it just me, or does Gilbert get increasingly cuter with each chapter? I don't think it's just me…anyway, you know the drill. I don't own the characters and all that. Thanks for all the comments! As somebody once said to me, Praise feeds my soul! I love you guys!**

With the only adult in the house at that moment sitting in the kitchen sobbing Gilbert, well…he freaked out a little bit. Okay, he freaked out a lot. He ran around trying to think of things that would make him feel better if it was him in that position, and ran up to his bedroom and grabbed something running back downstairs and shoving into Antonio's face with a blush. The brunette looked up and was startled to see the teddy bear, and then smiled softly, pulling Gilbert into a tight hug as he whispered his thanks. Sure, it wouldn't be the Gilbert he knew, but this Gilbert was a lot cuter. The Spaniard chuckled a little before pulling away and kissing the boy on the temple, ruffling his hair, and standing to clear the table. He turned back to find Gilbert standing in the same spot, his face as red as one of Antonio's prized tomatoes and still holding the fluffy teddy bear.

He was just about to say something when there was another knock on the door and Gilbert raced to it, flinging it open to reveal Elizaveta standing there smiling with a camera around her neck and Roderich behind her. "Hello there, Gilbert! May we come in?"

The Prussian stared at Roderich warily for a moment, who looked away feeling embarrassed, and nodded. "Yeah, come on in to my palace of awesome. Unless you aren't awesome. Then you're not welcome here." Elizaveta giggled and Antonio chuckled while Roderich looked away again, knowing Gilbert was talking to him specifically.

"Well, Gilbert, it's nice to meet you in person! My name is Elizaveta and this is Roderich! And I was wondering if you would like to learn how to play piano? Because Roderich here is more than willing to teach you!"

Roderich looked over at this, his eyes wide. "I am?"

Elizaveta glared and turned to him. "Yes you are." She turned back to Gilbert with a bright smile. "So? How does that sound?"

Once again the child stared intensely at Roderich, his eyes boring into the man. "Well…music is awesome, but I don't think I want to learn from him…" Antonio laughed at Gilbert's words and smiled at the slight anger on Elizaveta's face.

"You know it's cute, Eliza." Antonio rested his hand on the woman's back, saying her name teasingly. "He's too cute to get too angry at, right?" The Spaniard smiled and picked Gilbert up again, swinging the boy around, this time making the child laugh manically. "See? Too cute!"

Elizaveta giggled and even Roderich smiled fondly at the boy. Suddenly the Hungarian woman blushed a bit and pulled out her camera, snapping some pictures and muttering softly to herself that she'd have to remember to give Kiku some copies. "He is really cute now. But I remember back when we were kids, he was way different than this."

Gilbert looked around in confusion as tension filled the air. "Can someone please tell me what's going on?"

At his words, Elizaveta's head snapped up as she glared at Antonio. "Have you not told him anything?"

"No. I don't see a point to. I mean, what good will come of telling him?" Antonio set Gilbert down and whispered for him to go up to his room. The Prussian simply nodded, gathered up his teddy bear, and walked upstairs. "In the end, telling him will just hurt everyone and put pressure on him!"

"Pressure? What kind of pressure can be put on a child by telling them their past?"

"Do you not get it? He aims to please the people around him! If we tell him, he's going to feel pressure to make himself more like he used to be and please everybody!" Antonio turned away from Elizaveta, running his hands through his hair in rage. "There's really no need to tell him!"

Elizaveta grabbed the Spaniard and forced him to look at her. "But he needs to know what happened to him! You don't have to tell him what he used to be like, but he does need to know what his past is like!"

"No he doesn't! I don't even know what Ivan did to him, but I can't let him relive that!"

"What do you mean by relive?"

Antonio sighed and squeezed his eyes shut. "I mean that there's a chance that he does have his old memories, but that they're repressed. There's a chance that if he hears about his past, he'll remember those repressed memories."

Elizaveta and Roderich stared at the Spaniard in shock for a moment before the Austrian spoke. "That's…pretty deep coming from you…"

"It's Ludwig's theory. It was his decision not to tell Gilbert. Ludwig of all people should know what is right for his own brother!"

Elizaveta stared down, her eyes shadowed by her bangs as her hands clenched into fists and she bit at her lower lip. "Like heck he does! Gilbert needs to know about his past, you idiot!"

All three adults jumped as the front door slammed and Ludwig walked into the kitchen, looking seriously angry. "What is going on here?"

Elizaveta looked toward Roderich with a guilty expression as Antonio turned to Ludwig. "She swears up and down she know what's best for Gil-"

"I heard what happened. I want you out of my house right now, Elizaveta. No buts or anything. I want you out of here. Now!" The booming voice sent the Hungarian woman toward the door, dragging Roderich with her as she glared backwards at Ludwig and Antonio.

"Ludwig, about Gilbert…do you really think there's a possibility he could remember everything?"

"I do. But I don't want him to. I know what Ivan did to him, and that is the last thing I want him to remember. I refuse to take any chances with him!"

Antonio shuddered as he stared into the German's ice blue eyes. "I feel the same. But I just…"

Ludwig sighed, his expression softening. "I know, you loved him and want him to remember all the good times you two had." Ludwig softened even more as Antonio nodded and looked away, trying to hide his quiet tears from the German. "It's okay to feel that way. In fact, it's natural. There's no reason to feel ashamed."

"There was earlier when I couldn't hold it in and started sobbing in front of Gilbert!" Antonio's quiet crying suddenly escalated into full out sobs. "You didn't see how freaked out he was! He even offered me his teddy bear to calm me down!"

Ludwig stood staring at the brunette for a moment before having to stifle a laugh at the mental image. "He's so cute!" The blonde suddenly let lose and started laughing hysterically as he yelled the words.

Antonio smiled and chuckled as he remembered earlier that afternoon. Finally he wiped away his tears and turned to the staircase. "I should probably go check on him, yeah?" He climbed up to the second floor and walked down the hallway until he reached Gilbert's bedroom. The creaking door slowly opened under his soft touch as he peeked inside to see Gilbert curled up on the bed, snuggling with his teddy bear. Unable to resist, Antonio walked to the bed and lay down next to the child, pulling the silverette to his chest. "Buenas noches. Tener buenos sueños." Those were his last words as he drifted off into the world of sleep.

**AN: Btw, what Antonio says to Gilbo at the end is "Good night. Have good dreams."**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: I love you guys! Just hoping I can keep this up and keep it good. I don't anything and all that stuff. So, here we go with chapter five! I can't believe I'm this far already! Anyway, less cuteness this chapter, sorry…Also, there's some language and violence in this, so the rating has been raised. Sorry again. And I hope you guys realize what I did with Gil's outfit in this! ;) And also, serious sadness ahead! Prepare yourself!**

Antonio yawned and stretched, keeping his eyes closed as he woke, sunlight filtering through the blinds and hitting his face. "Hey, Gil? You awake yet?" There was a slight yelp as Antonio opened his emerald eyes and looked at the kid lying next to him. "Y-You had a growth spurt!" Where last night there had been a small child, there was now a preteen, his clothes quite small on him. The brunette stood and raced around the room, grabbing one of his t-shirts and throwing it to the now half-awake boy. "It'll be big, but it'll be a lot better than what you're wearing until we can get some different clothes for you!" With that he left the confused boy in the room to change and raced to the room where he knew Ludwig was sleeping in. "Ludwig! We've got a problem!"

The German stared up at him with confusion and anger etched on his face. "What is it now, Antonio?" After Antonio explained the situation, Ludwig sighed and stood. "Feliciano and Kiku were planning on coming over in a short bit anyway, so we'll leave Bruder with them and go shopping."

And that's exactly what happened. The two left the child with his friends, Feliciano squealing about how cute the silver bedhead was and how he was going to make the beast pasta ever for lunch, and went shopping for new clothes. They were just picking some out when a giggling blonde (with quite a nice body, Antonio admitted) walked up with a friend following behind her. "Excuse me, but aren't the two of you too big to be wearing children's clothes? Or are they for your child?"

Ludwig turned bright red as Antonio turned to the two, a smile on his face. "No. They're for his younger brother, and I'm a family friend he brought along! Tell me, do either of you speak the wonderful language of Spanish?" The two girls shook their heads. "Good. ¿Le importaría decirme por qué usted debe actuar como tal estúpido perras?"

He smiled again at the confused looks and turned to walk away, patting Ludwig on the shoulder as he did so. "Wha-what did you say to them?"

"Hmm…it was…'Would you mind telling me why you should act like stupid bitches?'" Antonio smiled and paid for the clothes, taking the bag and walking out of the store and back to Ludwig's house, stopping as soon as the door opened. Feliciano sat there, staring at the door in guilt as Kiku ran around taking pictures of Gilbert, who was sitting there in a stereotypical anime school uniform…for girls. Antonio dropped the bag in his hand and covered his flushed face, looking away as Ludwig ran in and started yelling at the two, throwing the bag at Gilbert and telling him to go change.

Antonio gasped a bit when Kiku walked up to him with a smirk on his feminine face. "Excuse me but, would you like copies of the pictures, Antonio-san?" Antonio felt his face grow hotter as he pushed Kiku out of his way to walk inside and sat in the kitchen. His face had finally cooled when Gilbert came back downstairs, clothed in a black t-shirt, red skinny jeans, and gold converse. "Ah, hey, Gilbert."

"Hey, Toni. Mein Gott those two can be annoying! But, I still care for them." Antonio didn't miss the soft smile on Gilbert's face as the Prussian sat down across from him at the kitchen table. The Spaniard glanced towards the floor and saw the soles of the converse flat on the tiles. "Eh? Why are you staring at my feet? Are the shoes too much?"

"No…you look fine. It's just…you've grown, Gil, so much in just one night…" Antonio smiled up into his friend's crimson eyes. "I'm sure you'll be as big as I am one of these days."

Gilbert laughed, the sound filling the air. Antonio blinked at the familiarity of the sound. "Well, I am awesome enough to!" The two smiled at each other as the other three came inside the room, Ludwig yelling at the others about how they'd have to make it up to him and Gilbert.

The two sitting at the table laughed and turned to each other, ignoring the noise around them as they started talking about anything and everything, as if they were old friends who hadn't seen each other for quite a long time. Antonio smiled his usual bright smile as he stood holding his hand out to Gilbert. "Want to get some air?" Gilbert nodded and stood, pushing his chair in behind him as he stuck his hands in his pockets and followed Antonio through the living room and onto the porch, leaning against the railing as he breathed in the cold night air. Antonio turned and stared at the boy who was bathed in the light of the full moon, making his silver hair and pale skin seem to shine.

"Antonio…you guys all...confuse me…I really don't get it. You keep talking about this 'past' that I have, but I was created not that long ago. I don't have a past!" The boy's voice filled with anger as he turned his head more toward the moon and stared at the shining stars as if they'd give him the answers Antonio was denying him.

The Spaniard sighed and faced the moon as well. "You really don't need to know, Gilbert. You're fine just the way you are. And if anything changes that…" Antonio trailed off and shook his head. "You just don't need to know, Gilbert."

"Well maybe I'll go off and read a history book or something! I'm sure the history of Prussia is recorded somewhere!" Both men stopped at the sound of footsteps. Antonio was about to speak up when he felt something hit the side of his head, hard, before he slammed into the wall and fell, his vision going black. The last thing he heard was Gilbert. "Y-You're…"

When Antonio finally woke up, the moon seemed to be even brighter, and shown on a spot of red in the yard. Seeing a form inside the red and Gilbert nowhere in sight, Antonio scrambled over and stopped right beside the still form, bringing the body as close to him as he could, not caring about the blood. "G-Gilbert…? Wake…wake up…Gilbert!" The brunette shook the boy in his arms, willing him to wake up as he screamed, unable to take the sight of Gilbert, so young and innocent, lying in a pool of his own blood that had been formed by the injuries covering his body.

Of course Antonio wanted to help, but all he could do was scream.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Huh…people loved that last chapter…awesome! And in this one, Feliciano isn't useless! And I'm so mean to Gil and Toni! I'm sorry! Also, in your reviews, a couple of you guessed right. You guys are epic! And there's a song used in this part. It's a lullaby I sung in 7****th**** grade choir. I loved singing it. It's really beautiful. And be warned! Dark!Spain and Dark!Italy ahead! And probably a lot of OOC Italy…sorry bout that…Ah! My author notes are always so randomly put together! This is the longest chapter yet. And it is not for the faint of heart. I REPEAT: NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART! There's a lot of blood and killing in this one, and it's kinda graphic. It may be found disturbing to some viewers. And this was posted pretty quickly. But the inspiration came to me last night and I couldn't stop writing once I started!**

The pain wouldn't go away, Antonio would decide later. Not the pain where he got hit, but the pain of guilt that he let this happen. It made him scream even louder. The screaming alerted the men inside the house that something was wrong, and all three raced out, Kiku and Ludwig immediately running to Antonio, and Feliciano running back inside with a strange look on his face. Ludwig immediately took Gilbert from Antonio, who was now quiet but shaking violently and crying. "What the hell happened, Antonio?"

"I don't…I don't know! I heard footsteps and then I was knocked out and when I came to…" Antonio's cries got louder. "How could I let this happen?" Kiku, who had been as silent as a ghost until that moment, pulled out a roll of bandages and began wrapping Antonio's head. "Wh-What are you doing? I'm fine! You should be helping Gilbert, not me!"

The small Japanese man stared up into Antonio's eyes, his expression unreadable. "Feliciano-kun has got that covered. And did you not realize that you're bleeding as well? On both sides of your head?" For the first time, Antonio lifted his hands to the sides of his face, emerald eyes widening as he felt blood. "So let me bandage you up. That way Gilbert will worry less when he wakes up."

That was when Feliciano ran back out of the house, cell phone in one hand and a first aid kit in the other. He was talking hurriedly in Italian, so Antonio could only pick up a few words. Words like 'bleeding' and 'doctor'. The Italian smiled softly at Ludwig as he hung up and got to work on Gilbert. The four sat there like that, Ludwig holding his brother and Kiku and Antonio watching as Feliciano took care of him, until the ambulance Feliciano had called for arrived.

Everything was calm. That was really all the Spaniard knew. Of course, in other parts of this hospital, it wasn't so calm, but in this room, it was. It was the perfect environment for Gilbert to wake up in. The light sunlight of the morning drifting in through the open window, bringing a slight spring breeze and the chirping of birds, the calmness of the room, Antonio sitting right next to the bed. He should have gone home, or at least left to grab something to eat before now, but he couldn't bring himself to leave the bedside. And he didn't get in trouble for it. The doctors and nurses just left him be. Maybe it was because they knew not to go in that room, or maybe it was the evident pain and sorrow on his tear-streaked face.

The quiet of the morning was suddenly broken by his soft, hoarse voice. "Gilbert…it's been three days already…when will you wake up? You're going to wake up right? You have to." The brunette sighed and leaned back in his seat, yawning as he readjusted to make himself more comfortable. He hadn't gotten even a minute of sleep since he got to the hospital three days prior. And he knew that he wouldn't be able to until he knew Gilbert was alright. He jumped at sudden muttering he could've sworn was in German. Looking towards the door and all around the room, he saw nobody but himself and Gilbert. So when the muttering happened again, he jumped up and stared down at Gilbert, who was in fact, the cause.

The boy was writhing a bit, his face scrunched up in pain. Antonio silently translated the German in his head, thanking Ludwig for forcing him to learn. "Let's see…he's saying…'Damn…I can't…let you hurt them…Shit…I don't want…what the hell…do you want with me…?'" Antonio's eyes widened as he shook a little harder, and he let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding when the Prussian's crimson eyes opened and stared up at him. "Gilbert! Thank goodness! You've been asleep for days and I was starting to worry and…!"

Gilbert laughed, cutting his friend off. "Well, Antonio, now you know how I felt!"

"This is different!"

"How is it any different at all?" Gilbert sat up, clutching his side as he winced before turning and looking straight up at Antonio, who was surprisingly serious.

Said Spaniard suddenly stood, his brown hair covering his eyes. "Oh, I don't know, maybe because I wasn't out cold for three days? Maybe because I let you know what happened?" Gilbert looked toward the window, obviously trying to contain his anger.

"You wanna know what happened? I was beaten within an inch of my life by that Russian bastard!" Gilbert stood in anger, only to cough up blood and collapse. Luckily, Antonio was right there to catch him.

The Spaniard sighed and laid the Prussian back in bed, brushing silver hair away from his face. "Don't push yourself, alright?" He earned a small nod from the child lying in bed and settled into the chair, his hand running through silver hair as he smiled softly and started singing quietly, his words filling the still air of the hospital room.

_Sleep, Oh my darling, now sleep.  
>Mother her vigil doth keep.<br>Birds are asleep in their nests;  
>Lambkins and bees are at rest.<br>All now is quiet and still  
>Hushed are the vale and the hill.<br>Soft be thy slumber and deep.  
>Sleep, oh my darling now sleep. 0h sleep, oh sleep.<em>

_Quiet now reigns in the house.  
>Tired are the cat and the mouse.<br>Turmoil of day now is o'er.  
>Hushed are the noise and the roar.<br>All now in slumber doth lie.  
>Bright are the stars in the sky.<br>Angels a guard o'er thee keep.  
>Sleep, oh my darling, now sleep.<br>Oh sleep, oh sleep._

Gilbert was soon sleeping soundly. With a sigh Antonio pulled out his cell phone, shooting the Prussian one last look before walking out of the room and pressing the number 1 on speed dial. He then held the phone against his ear and waited until he heard the familiar voice. "Ah, Lovi! There you are! Sorry I haven't been around much lately, but I have a favor to ask of you."

"He woke up!" Antonio looked up as Ludwig ran in, followed by Feliciano. "By Bruder woke up?"

Antonio smiled softly. "Yeah, a while ago. We started arguing and he pushed himself too hard and passed out. I'll…leave you two alone." Antonio walked out of the hospital room, followed closely by Feliciano. "I'm guessing your brother told you?"

Feliciano smiled brightly. "Of course! Why wouldn't he tell me that you asked him to get his people to take out Ivan for you?"

The Spaniard's face darkened, even though he was still smiling. "Not just taken him out, but make him pay for every single thing he has done to Gilbert. Tenfold."

Feliciano laughed and smiled at Antonio. "Sì, sì. Sono completamente d'accordo. But why ask Fratello?"

Another sinister smile. "Let's just say…he knows people."

The news a couple days later was horrendous. "The body of Ivan Brangski was found in his bedroom this morning by his servant Toris. He had been murdered." Antonio chuckled as he turned the TV off and stood, stretching as he prepared to go to the hospital to visit Gilbert. But before he left, he pulled out his cell phone and once again pressed 1 on speed dial. "Lovi? Thank you. You didn't get your hands dirty, did you?" He paused, smiling. "That's good. Thank you, my little brother."

The Spaniard hung up his phone and walked out the door, locking it behind him as he walked to the hospital and up to Gilbert's room where he found the Prussian sitting in bed with a bored expression, Ludwig standing next to him, freaking out. When they saw Antonio, Gilbert smiled and waved while Ludwig ran to him and grabbed him by the shoulders. "D-Did you hear? Ivan was murdered last night!"

"Of course I heard!" Antonio smiled towards Gilbert and waved before turning to the German as his face returned to his creepy expression. "How bad was it?"

"R-Really bad…It must've been worse than everything he ever did to…you know who…combined."

Antonio chuckled darkly again as Feliciano walked in the room, smiling happily. "So, I guess you all heard the good news, ve? Isn't it great, Toni? They actually came through!"

"I'm so proud of my little Lovino! All the work he did without even having to dirty his hands!" Antonio smiled darkly.

There was stillness in the room. "Wh-what? Who…killed Ivan…? Someone you know, Antonio? What the hell did you have to do with this?" Gilbert's angry voice cut through the silence.

"Nothing much. I just got one of my friends to call up some people he knew."

"So you masterminded all of this? And you say it's 'nothing much'? What kind of idiot are you?" Gilbert stood and approached the man, anger evident on his face. "And what was your reasoning behind doing that?"

Antonio stood his ground. "He hurt you. That's my reasoning."

Crimson eyes widened. "Y-you…got somebody to kill another person…because of me…?" Antonio nodded and kept smiling, even as Gilbert punched him across the face. "You…you…you idiotic bastard! Wie zum Teufel hast du gedacht, dass wäre eine gute Idee sein? Oder, dass ich möchte, dass du so etwas tun?"

Antonio stopped as Ludwig sighed and translated. "I should've known he'd go back to German when he got angry. He said 'How the hell did you think that would be a good idea? Or that I want you to do such a thing?' I'm disappointed as well, Antonio."

Emerald eyes widened as Antonio looked down at the Prussian. "Gilbert…this had to be done after all he's done to you!"

"Antonio! Don't!"

"Not just the beating a few days ago, but years ago after World War II! I couldn't forgive him! He needed to die!"

"Antonio!"

"The bastard deserves what he got! He deserves more than that actually! ¡Su alma tiene que pudrirse en el infierno por lo que hizo! ¡Pero él no se merece el infierno! ¡Es demasiado bueno para él! ¡Se merece algo peor!"

Feliciano looked away and translated what the Spaniard had said. "He said… 'His soul must rot in hell for what he did. But he does not deserve hell. It's too good for him. He deserves worse.' I'm sorry you had to see him this way, Gilbert."

There was another silence in the room, along with thick tension. "I have no clue…what the hell anyone is talking about! What about after World War II? I wasn't even alive then!"

"Bruder…" The Prussian looked over at his brother's voice. "You were…"

Gilbert leaned against the wall, his eyes wide. How could he believe everything he had just been told? The story of his life. But his brother had told him, while crying, so it had to be true…right? And the strange dreams he had been having recently seemed to fit the timeline perfectly. But…it couldn't be the truth…Gilbert chuckled slightly, emptily. "Y-you're lying…right…you're lying! You have to be lying!" The Prussian fell to his knees, gripping his head and shaking, tears falling down his face as he was flooded with flashbacks and memories.

Ludwig and Antonio raced forward, both calling the child's name, but he pushed them away and stood, running out the door wide eyed. "Don't…Don't touch me!"

Antonio sighed and fell against the wall, staring at the door. "We're still in the hospital. He won't get far."

Ludwig walked to the door. "He will. He's still a lot like the Gilbert we knew, more than we thought anyway. He's going to find a way out. Antonio…This is all your fault! If you had even tried to control yourself and not snapped at him, we wouldn't have had to do that!"

"You want to kill me now, don't you?"

"Why in the world would I want to kill you?" The German's words with heavy with anger as he refused to look at Antonio.

"You just said it was my fault. And you saw the pain on his face when he left. I-"

"I can't kill you, no matter how much I want to. It'd be too hard on Gilbert." Antonio stared at the blonde in shock. "Do you not get it? He wasn't mad at you because you got Lovino to get his people to kill Ivan for Gilbert, but because that action indirectly left blood on your hands! That's why he got pissed at you! He knows that your hands are already stained beyond recognition with blood, but knowing that now there's more because of him…he…"

"What are you trying to say, Ludwig?"

"You're an idiot! I'm trying to tell you he cares deeply about you! Hell, he may even love you! Whether or not it's in the way you love him, I don't know. But he certainly loves you more than anyone else around here."

A single cuss word was all that came out of the brunette's mouth as he stood and raced after Gilbert, his thoughts running wild. 'Please be okay, please be okay!' He stopped when he saw a flash of silver hair…much higher than it should've been. Rage and protectiveness boiled in his gut as he realized what was happening. "Natalia! Let him go! I'm the one who conspired to kill Ivan! He had nothing to do with it!"

The Belarusian woman was holding a struggling Gilbert as high as she could in the air as she glared at Antonio, a knife gleaming in the hand not holding the Prussian. "I know. But your actions took away my most special person, so now I'll do the same to you!" The knife flashed again in the light.

Crimson eyes widened when the boy realized what was about to happen. "Antonio!" The cry was hoarse from fear as the knife approached his chest.

"Gilbert!" Antonio raced forward, even though he knew he would be too late. Then there was the sickening sound of metal cutting through skin, and blood…blood everywhere.

Everything stopped for a moment before Gilbert landed on the ground with a thud, panting and clutching his chest. Antonio raced forward and kneeled next to the boy, checking for injuries, which surprisingly, there were none. As he glared back up, his eyes widened. Natalia was standing still, knife now on the ground from when she had dropped it, blood running from the side of her mouth and dropping down her chin as she stared at the blade protruding from her chest.

And suddenly her eyes closed and she fell as the blade was pulled out of her now dead body. Antonio stared at the man holding the murder weapon in disbelief. "Francis…?"

The Frenchman smiled, an eerie look when he was covered in blood and holding a bloody sword. "I couldn't let her kill one of the trio, now could I?"

Gilbert whimpered a bit and buried his face in Antonio's shirt. The Spaniard looked down and smiled softly, picking the boy up and walking back towards the hospital room. "Shush Gilbert, its okay. I'm here. I've got you. I won't let anything like that ever happen to you. I swear it on my very soul." He finally made it back to the room, Francis following behind, and laid the boy down softly on the bed, covering him up and smiling. "I won't leave you alone. I promise." Gilbert nodded softly and reached his hand out towards Antonio, who smiled and took the small hand in his as he started singing again.

_Sleep, Oh my darling, now sleep.  
>Mother her vigil doth keep.<br>Birds are asleep in their nests;  
>Lambkins and bees are at rest.<br>All now is quiet and still  
>Hushed are the vale and the hill.<br>Soft be thy slumber and deep.  
>Sleep, oh my darling now sleep. 0h sleep, oh sleep.<em>

_Quiet now reigns in the house.  
>Tired are the cat and the mouse.<br>Turmoil of day now is o'er.  
>Hushed are the noise and the roar.<br>All now in slumber doth lie.  
>Bright are the stars in the sky.<br>Angels a guard o'er thee keep.  
>Sleep, oh my darling, now sleep.<br>Oh sleep, oh sleep._


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: I'm so sorry this took so long, I just really couldn't think of anything to write! Huh…I've gotten more daring. For this one includes…Strip poker! Mwahahahaha! And this one has straight up PrussiaxSpain action! Finally! Waah! Love triangle alert! And…Iggy alert! XD And this is just the way I picture him kinda in his spare time, so it's probably OOC…And there's some SpUk in here now too, sorry to those of you who don't like that pairing. And I'm still mean to Gilbert…**

It had been a month or so since Gilbert had been discharged from the hospital and he was finally up and around again. Since Ludwig and the others had to go back to work, Ludwig had left Antonio and Francis in charge of Gilbert, even though he swore that it would be a bad idea. And so, there they sat, together again. Too bad they had nothing to do. The overwhelming silence in the room over the poker game in front of them was too much for poor Gilbert (who was finally as big as he had been during World War II) Who screamed in frustration and threw his cards on the table. Francis peeked over and smirked. "You lose again, Mon Cher. Lose the pants."

Antonio smirked but still looked away blushing as Gilbert stood and took off his pants, leaving only his boxers on his pale body. "There, happy, Francis?"

The blonde Frenchman's smirk got wider as he looked over at Antonio. "I believe Antonio is. A bit happier than he should be." He laughed as both the Prussian and the Spaniard started yelling at him. "Let's see, why don't we all get dressed and go out, oui?"

Antonio stared at Francis incredulously. "Do you seriously think he's ready to get drunk and flirt? He's still pretty young, no matter how big he's gotten."

"I do believe he is. You didn't object to the three of us playing strip poker." Francis shrugged. "I say we go out tonight. As long as we get home before Ludwig."

"He'll be able to smell the alcohol. And you always stay out all night!"

"Then you two can come home early, since you are staying here and I'm not."

After a bit more convincing, Antonio and Gilbert agreed to go bar hopping with Francis. They all got dressed in their best clothes (which Antonio and Ludwig had gone out to buy for Gilbert again) and left.

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"I have to admit, he's cute when he's drunk." Antonio chuckled as he turned his head to smile softly at the man on his back. "And he's a pretty good flirt." Francis chuckled and ruffled the unconscious Prussian's silver hair. "But I knew it would be a bad idea to take him drinking. Sure, he can hold his liquor, but he doesn't know his limits yet."

Francis simply smiled and looked over at Gilbert. "Oui. But what can you expect from his first time drinking?" Francis swung open to door to Ludwig's house, which was still dark and empty. "Well, I suppose I'll come visit tomorrow. Have a good night!"

Antonio said goodbye to his friend and walked inside, turning lights on as he went, until he got to Gilbert's bedroom and deposited the Prussian on top of the blanket. He turned to walk back out but was stopped by a hand grabbing his. "Antonio…" He turned to look at his friend, when he was suddenly grabbed and pulled down, his lips meeting Gilbert's. "Thanks for everything."

All the Spaniard could do was race out of the room, his face tomato red. "Wh-What was that…?"

Meanwhile Gilbert laid on his bed, his face almost as red as Antonio's. "I wonder…if I went too far…"

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"Antonio? Gilbert? What's going on? You aren't talking let alone looking at each other…" Francis looked worriedly between his two friends. "Did something happen while Gilbert was drunk?" When he saw the heavy blush on both of their cheeks, he knew that he had hit a bull's-eye. "So it was. Ah, to get you're minds off of it, let's play strip poker again! Except this time, I've got girls to play with us!" Pretty soon, the trio was sitting in Ludwig's living room with three women, on their first hand of poker. "So, Gilbert, when are you planning on moving to your own house?"

"I'm not sure. I guess whenever Lud is fine with it. He's still pretty paranoid." Gilbert studied his cards thoughtfully, his poker face easily readable. He had a horrible hand.

"Of course, he already lost you once. You lose, Gil. Off with your shoes." The Prussian slipped his shoes off and the game continued until he was down to nothing but his boxers again.

"You guys cheat! This is all a cheat! Someone else needs to lose hand!"

"Quit whining. We aren't cheating. Ah, you lost again." Francis smirked up at the silverette. "You know what that means."

Gilbert started muttering cuss words under his breath as he got dressed and walked out, slamming the door behind him. Antonio stared at the door for a minute before turning a guilty gaze over to Francis, who was surprisingly interested on a small stain on the otherwise perfect carpet. "Francis, someone should go after him. He's still young. He can't protect himself."

The Spaniard shuddered under a cold blue gaze as Francis lifted his eyes and glared at Antonio. "You're his 'lover' so you go after him."

Antonio and Francis stood at this, Antonio's fist banging into the wall and leaving a dent. "What's your problem? I thought you knew how I felt about Gilbert?"

"I did! But it was always one-sided and it was supposed to stay that way!"

"I thought I was your friend? Why would you want my love to stay one-sided?"

"It's simple! Because I love you! You know what? I give up. Just go chase after Gilbert." Francis watched as Antonio raced out of the house. "I'm still happy for you, Mon Amour."

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What Antonio had been expecting was the worst. What he found was nowhere close. What he found was Arthur Kirkland sitting on a park bench, an acoustic guitar being played softly as he sang, Gilbert next to him smiling brightly. When the song ended, Gilbert clapped. "That was awesome, Arthur! So, will you teach me?"

"S-Sure, if you really want me to…" Arthur's face was a blush.

"Of course! Awesome me can only be taught by the most awesome musicians!" Arthur flushed even more. When Gilbert turned and noticed Antonio staring at them, his face flushed a bit. "Ah, Toni. What are you doing here?"

Arthur turned and glared at Antonio. "What the hell are you staring at, Git?" Antonio almost laughed at how hard Arthur was blushing, but instead he just chuckled.

"What's this now? When we dated, you never once told me you're a musician."

Arthur was now bright red. "You never asked. Besides, I did go through that punk phase, of course I'm a musician!"

Antonio simply leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Arthur's lips. "You should have told me, Mi Querido. Maybe we could have stayed together longer if I had known. Now, run off. Despedida." As soon as Arthur was gone, Antonio turned to Gilbert, who was glaring at him.

"What the hell was that for, Antonio?"

"I didn't want him near you." The Spaniard pulled Gilbert in for a passionate kiss before walking away, his eyes narrowed. He didn't expect Gilbert to get too overwhelmed and run off to pick a fight, let alone to be beaten.


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: I love you guys so much! Reading your reviews always makes my day! And all the reviews I've been getting…I never expected this little thing to be as popular as it is! But that makes me wonder…how long will I be able to keep it going? And will I be able to make an epic, non-clichéd ending? Well, I guess I'll worry about that when it comes to it! And the song excerpt in this part is a little song I wrote on the spot. This one's pretty short…and I've got writer's block again…and school's about to start up, so I won't be able to write as much. Just a little warning.**

When Antonio entered the semi-dark house, all he heard was Ludwig yelling in German, with Gilbert saying something in the language every once in a while. Antonio silently slipped his shoes off and walked upstairs and down to Gilbert's bedroom. When he peeked inside, his emerald eyes widened with shock. The Prussian was a mess. He was covered with blood and bruises, a couple stab wounds here and there. Antonio simply stared as Ludwig patched his brother up, still yelling in German. "Lud, listen to me, I'm sorry I went out and got in a fight, but I totally would have won if he hadn't pulled that knife on me! And besides, none of these injuries are very bad anyway."

"I know, Bruder, I know. But…I still…I've already lost you once! Now I can't stand seeing you hurt!" Gilbert reached out and softly wiped away some of the tears cascading down his brother's cheek. "I don't want to lose you again!"

After a moment of silence, Gilbert stopped and took a deep breath before starting to sing. "_Now stop, be still, everything's going to be alright. Now don't worry, everything will turn out fine. And, I swear, I will never leave your side again, for my will is to be with you for all my life_." Antonio's eyes widened even more. That was the song Arthur had been singing that afternoon. "_I will not leave again and I won't back down this time. I will return to you, even if it costs my pride. When all that's wrong is right, and all that's right is wrong, I'll still return to you, no matter how hard I have to try._" Ludwig smiled up at his brother through his tears and stood, leaving the room and dragging Antonio with him downstairs and onto the front porch.

"What the hell, Antonio? I left you to take care of him, and I come home from work today to find him like that?" Antonio internally flinched when Ludwig raised a hand, but then calmed when he realized the German was just showing his anger through movement.

"He ran off. I chased him but lost track of him. I was out searching for him and that's why I got back so la-"

"Save your breath, Antonio. Gilbert told me everything." Ludwig turned away, sighing and running a hand through his golden hair. "Just be lucky Gilbert likes you as much as he does, or otherwise I would've kicked you out by now. It's late, I'm going to bed. Try not to stay up too late."

After watching Ludwig walk up to his bedroom, Antonio walked quietly up the stairs and past the guest room he was staying in, to Gilbert's room. Even though the lights were out, Antonio still knocked and looked inside. "Gil? You in here?" He quietly made his way into the dark room, stopping when his eyes adjusted to the darkness and he saw Gilbert's form, hidden by the covers, shaking with silent sobs. "Gilbert? What's wrong? Why are you crying? Do your injuries hurt worse than you let on or someth-"

"Everyone keeps talking about how they lost me before and all and don't want anything to happen to me now…and it's scary and suffocating. I'm not even allowed to leave the house alone!" Gilbert threw off the cover and stared up at Antonio, tears falling down his face. "I never know what to do because I don't know what I'm allowed to do! And if I do one thing wrong, one thing I'm not supposed to, I get in trouble for it!"

Antonio sat on the edge of the bed so that he was eye level with the Prussian. "I'm sure that if you just talk to Ludwig about it, he'll understand and…"

Gilbert shook his head and looked away. "I tried. He told me that he wants me to stay under close supervision until he feels comfortable leaving me on my own. But how long will that take?"

After looking closely at his friend, Antonio wrapped his arms tightly around Gilbert and pulled him into a tight hug. "Here, I'll talk to him about it tomorrow, alright?" Gilbert nodded as Antonio released him before walking out of the room. However, the Spaniard stood in the door way watching Gilbert until the man finally fell asleep.

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"He feels trapped, suffocated! You know he needs to be set free soon!" Antonio stared up into angry blue orbs, unafraid as he defended Gilbert. "You can't keep him here forever. He wants out!"

Ludwig grimaced as his gaze left Antonio and found its way to where Gilbert was sitting out of earshot, talking and laughing with Kiku and Feliciano. "I can and will keep him here forever if that keeps him safe. We both know that that's more important than-"

The Spaniard swiftly cut him off. "Listen to yourself! You're saying that making him want to die, but not wanting to die so he won't hurt anyone, is more important than his happiness! To me, his happiness is more important than anything else! You're his brother so I thought you of all people would understand that!"

Then there was an awkward silence between the two. "I do know that…" Ludwig trailed off as Gilbert stood and stretched before walking over to the two. "But don't you need to go back to Spain today, Antonio? Back to work?"

Antonio glanced down at his watch. "I don't have to be at the airport for another hour and a half and I did all my packing last night. That gives us plenty of time to finish this discussion."

"Y-You're leaving?" Gilbert's red eyes widened as Antonio turned to him with a guilty expression. "And you didn't even give me any warning?"

The brunette sighed. "Well, yeah. I have to get back to work. But I promise I'll come back to visit as soon as my boss will let me."

"But you still didn't give me any warning!"

"I'm sorry, Gilbert. It just would've been too hard. I was being selfish."

There was another moment of silence as Gilbert lowered his eyes before Ludwig pushed Antonio towards the stairs.

He left later that day, not once getting a chance to tell Gilbert goodbye.

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It had now been a couple months since Antonio had left Germany to return to Spain and he was too swamped with work he had been missing to call Gilbert. He had just gotten home from work one day and was settling in with a cup of coffee when his phone rang. When he picked it up, he didn't even have the time to finish answering before he heard Ludwig's panicked voice on the other end. "Gilbert's sick!" The mug of coffee in Antonio's other hand crashed to the floor, shattering.


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: I'm not joking when I say I love you guys. Thanks to everyone who has favorited this story, or added it to their story alerts, and especially those of you who review. You guys really do make me feel accomplished. More OOC Italy, but I do believe he's the type with medical knowledge and can be very serious when using it. Okay, this is possibly (probably) the final chapter in this series. I may do an epilogue type thing if you guys want one and if I feel like it.**

"Wh-What?" He knew his voice shook, but he didn't care at this point. How could he with the news he had just gotten? Or with the fact that Ludwig was breaking down on the other line? Antonio had to admit that he was relieved when someone took the phone from the German. "What's…wrong with him?"

He recognized the new voice immediately. "We aren't sure yet. He's had a pretty high fever for a couple days now but wouldn't do anything about it, and today it finally got so bad he collapsed. And he's been out cold for a couple hours now, and every once in a while he'll just-" The voice on the other end was cut off by a blood-curdling scream that made Antonio flinch. "Do that. We don't know what's going on at this moment. I already checked and none of his wounds got infected…I don't know what it could be."

In his shock, Antonio fell back into the chair he had been about to sit in, ignoring the mess on the floor. "I can't…leave work." He pressed his free hand to his forehead as he felt anger and despair bubbling inside of him. "I can't be there…Feliciano, make sure you take good care of him, alright?"

"Of course. I would have even if you hadn't asked!" Antonio heard Feliciano turn and say something inaudible before coming back to the phone, his voice sounding strangely strained and worried. "Isn't there any way you can come here?"

"I can't! Why are you asking? You know I'm loaded with work I've been neglecting…"

"Antonio, even though he's unconscious, he's asking for you!" The Italian was cut off by another shrill scream. "Please, if you can find any way to get up here…" It wasn't hard to hear the tears in Feliciano's now shaking voice. "He needs you…"

Antonio glanced at his clock. "I'll be there in about two hours." He then hung up, ran upstairs and hurriedly packed a suitcase, and ran to the airport, catching the first flight to Berlin.

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The flight had seemed to take forever, but Antonio was finally back in Berlin and running to Ludwig's house. When he reached the familiar place, he flung open the door without knocking and ran up to Gilbert's room. The Prussian was lying on his bed, face twisted in pain as if he were having some sort of nightmare. The only audible word Antonio could hear was his name. Then Gilbert screamed again, making Antonio flinch and cover his ears.

"It's been like this since he passed out. Which was about…6 or 7 hours ago." Antonio spun at Francis's voice. The Frenchman's face was streaked with tears and his hair was a mess. His voice cracked as he talked and he had to go sit down and hide his face as he started crying again, obviously distraught. "Being in this house has been torture for anyone close to him. Feliciano and Kiku had to force Ludwig out of the house to keep him from having a mental breakdown."

Antonio looked back over to the Prussian and sat down slowly in the chair next to the bad, cautiously reaching out a hand and laying it on the silver hair. "Gilbert?" He heard another soft call of his name. "Yeah, I'm right here. Right here next to you, Gil." It was surprising how just that calmed the silverette down with just those words. "I'm right here where I need to be."

And as long as Antonio would say reassuring words and keep his hand on Gilbert's head, the Prussian was fine. But that meant that as soon as Antonio left the room, the screams started again. When Ludwig came home, he was surprised to see Antonio and was about to kick him out when he saw the effect the Spaniard had on his brother. He took the chance to sleep while he could. Francis had passed out on the other side of the room and now Feliciano was doing a check up on Gilbert.

"His fever has gone down immensely. And he doesn't look like he's in pain anymore. Ve~! You're great, Toni!" Feliciano snapped back to his usual, silly self and smiled. "That's great! But…what do you do when you need to potty?"

Antonio stilled. "Well, I'll get to that when it comes to it."

Feliciano laughed and walked out of the room, presumably to report to Ludwig. Antonio sighed and ran a hand through soft silver hair. "Hey, Gilbert, we're all worried. When are you going to wake up?"

He was startled by Gilbert's voice. "N-No…Ivan…don't…please…I-I'll…do anything…just please…don't hurt Toni…" Antonio felt his hands curl into fists as Gilbert's face twisted in pain again and another scream filled the air. _Th-that bastard! If he wasn't already dead, I would murder him with my own hands!_ Feliciano ran back into the room as Francis jerked awake at the screaming.

"What happened?" Feliciano ran to Gilbert, checking for fever or a way to calm him down.

Antonio pulled his hand off Gilbert's head and looked away. "He just started screaming again."

This answer was met with a glare from Feliciano. "Your body language says otherwise. What really happened?"

"He was talking in his sleep and then he started screaming."

The Italian hummed and returned his attention to Gilbert, who was no longer screaming but instead lying in the bed asleep again. "And what was he saying?"

Feliciano looked at Antonio through the corner of his eyes as the Spaniard tensed. "He was…begging Ivan not to hurt me. Saying he'd do anything." The brunette ran a hand through his hair and looked away. "If I hadn't already gotten Romano to I'd k-"

"He probably just had a bad dream."

"Probably?" Antonio's eyes snapped back to Feliciano.

Feliciano hummed a bit again. "There's a chance that the illness, whatever it may be, made him remember at least parts of his previous life. Or it may simply be a nightmare. I'm sorry, but the chances of the first option are surprisingly high."

"So…he may be…remembering his past right now?"

"Yes."

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"Hey, Gil, when are you going to wake up? It's been a week now…" Antonio sighed and ran a hand through silver hair. "Come on…"

Francis cautiously peeked in the room, a ringing phone held in one hand. "Toni, it's your boss again…"

"Tell him I'm not here."

The blonde in the doorway sighed. "Are you just going to waste your life here waiting for him to wake up? You haven't left his side in the week you've been here!"

"It's not a waste!" Antonio's snapping voice made Francis recoil. "Waiting for him to wake up…it's not a waste…"

"It will be if he doesn't wake up."

"He's going to wake up! He has to!" The Spaniard's voice was frantic as he felt tears gathering in his eyes. "We just got him back! He has to wake up!"

"Will you guys stop yelling at each other when I'm trying to sleep?" The two men in the room stopped and turned to the bed where Gilbert was lying with one arm flung over his eyes, but was peeking out from underneath. "You're too loud."

The two others stood there for a moment, processing what had happened, as Gilbert sat up and yawned. "Gil…Hey there! You musta been having some pretty bad dreams, huh?" Antonio smiled brightly and returned to his seat next to the bed.

"Don't even try to pass it off as dreams." The brunette watched his friend pull his knees up to his chest and rest his head on them so that he was facing the wall. "I know now. Those were 'my' memories weren't they?" The silence in the room answered his question. "Thanks, I guess I understand everything better now."

Francis, who had been quiet the entire time, silently walked into the room and sat a hand on Antonio's back. "What do you understand, Mon Cheri?"

Gilbert continued to look away. "Why I feel the way I do for certain people."

Antonio's voice was quiet, almost expectant. "What do you mean?"

The Prussian turned to his two friends, face alive with a red blush. "I love you, Toni. I always have. I guess that some things never change."

Antonio quickly gathered his friend into a hug, tears of joy running down his face. "Ah, damn it, Gilbert. Do you know how long I've waited for you to say that?"

"Eh? Wh-what do you mean?"

"You idiot! I'm trying to say I love you too!" Antonio's voice was joking as he laughed and pulled back a bit, smiling fondly at the silverette in his arms before leaning forward and kissing him.

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**AN: Woot! Two author's notes in this one! Well, that was the end! I know, crappy clichéd ending, but I'm a romantic, what can I say? Anyway, please review and tell me if you want an epilogue, and I will happily add one. Thank you guys so much for sticking by me while I wrote a tale of love and angst and friendship and sorrow. And as sad as I am to see this go, all good things must come to an end! Goodbye, my dears!**


	10. Epilogue

**AN: Well, here's the epilogue. This part has other pairings in it as well. Ah, fluff. I'm actually better at it than I thought. Okay, NOW it's a clichéd ending. But I still love it. Enjoy the very end of this tale, everyone! I've wrapped everything up in this one (I hope) and I feel good about it.**

_In the end, he impacted all our lives._

"So, Bruder, are you doing okay? Gilbert looked up as his brother looked down at him worriedly. "Now that you're living here with Antonio? You've been eating well, right? And you haven't gotten sick again?"

The Prussian laughed and sipped at the coffee in his hand. "I've been doing fine. I'm too awesome not to be, right?" He smiled brightly as Antonio walked in with a steaming mug and sat down on the couch next to Gilbert, putting his free hand around the Prussian's shoulders. Ludwig grit his teeth and looked away as his brother leaned into the touch. "We've been doing just fine, Lud."

Antonio smiled and leaned his head on Gilbert's. "And Feli and Francis come over and take care of us a lot. Not that we need to be taken care of, but…it sure does help."

Ludwig smiled, loving how happy his brother looked at that moment. "So, I suppose you guys are doing pretty well then?"

Gilbert and Antonio smiled and nodded, hands now intertwined. "Thanks, Ludwig. If you hadn't started that war…" Antonio's smile softened as he kissed Gilbert's temple. "Thanks."

The German smiled again and stood, saying farewell to his brother as he walked out of the house, leaving the two alone. "Hey, Toni."

"What's up?"

"Have I told you lately that I love you?"

The Spaniard laughed. "Yeah, but I do enjoy hearing that."

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Ludwig sighed and glanced over at Francis, who was leaning against the wall next to Antonio's door, his eyes staring at something no one else could see. "Are you okay? With them being together and all?"

The Frenchman smiled and turned his attention to the German. "Oui. After all, they're happy and that's all that really matters right?"

Ludwig smiled and stared up into the blue sky. "Of course."

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Elizaveta smiled as she reread the letter in her hand before passing it over to Roderich. "He's starting to sound more like himself, isn't he?"

The Austrian also smiled and set the letter down on his piano. "Yes. Even though he will never be exactly the same, he's better off like this."

"He reached the halfway mark. Half like he used to be, and half a new person." The Hungarian woman giggled. "I do believe it fits him."

Roderich smiled fondly and pulled Elizaveta as close to himself as he could.

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Feliciano smiled as he glanced down at the letter in his hand. "Fratello, are you angry?"

"Why would I be fucking angry?" Romano glared at his brother.

"Antonio and Gilbert are doing very well together. They're even talking about marriage. You really aren't angry?"

"No. He's happy with Potato Bastard Number Two, right? Besides, I knew all along that he looked at me as a younger brother. But even so, I'm still important to him!"

Feliciano laughed and pat his brother on the back. "Si!"

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Arthur stood in front of Alfred's door, his guitar in his hand as rain poured down onto him. After swallowing his nervousness, he reached forward and knocked. "A-Artie? What are you doing here? It's pouring rain out here! Hurry up and get in h-"

The Briton smiled and held his hand out. "Gilbert and Antonio got a new beginning, so I think it's only fair that we do as well."

Alfred blinked and stared at the former empire before smiling and taking his hand. "Yeah, I agree."

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All the other countries, especially the ones who had major impact in the return of Prussia, were invited to the wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony that mixed both the German and Spanish cultures with a reception fit for the Bad Touch Trio. Francis smiled as he congratulated his two best friends. Ludwig smiled at his brother as Feliciano laughed and joked with the Prussian, his hand intertwined with Ludwig's. Romano, of course, looked on with anger, but couldn't help but smile as Antonio turned to him, smiling his brightest smile ever. On the dance floor Elizaveta and Roderich waltzed together, a beauty to behold. And in the corner Arthur and Alfred stood, too entranced in each other to notice anything going on around them until Francis slapped Arthur on the back and the two started arguing. All in all, it was a good day.

And as Antonio and Gilbert left, all the heard was a chorus of people behind them shouting a single word. "Congrats!"

-End-


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